Madison, Wis.– Mary Madigan has joined The Guild, Inc. as vice president of merchandising. She brings extensive brand merchandising and product development experience to The Guild, most recently as senior vice president, merchandising and product development at chefs, where she introduced several new categories to the brand. Prior to chefs, Mary served as vice president, catalog merchandising at Restoration Hardware; director of merchandising for Drugstore.com; senior merchandise manager for catalog, internet and retail at Eddie Bauer Home; and director of home furnishings – retail for Pottery Barn.
In her new position at The Guild, Mary is responsible for the development of the artwork assortment for The Guild’s artfulhome.com Web site and The Artful Home® catalog. In addition, she oversees the merchandising and creative departments, works with The Guild’s artists on new product development, and serves on The Guild’s executive committee.
In addition to her professional experience, Mary holds a BFA in textile design from Syracuse University in Syracuse, N.Y. She also studied painting at Sculoa Lorenzo De’ Medici in Florence, Italy, and illustration at the School of Visual Arts in New York.
“We are so lucky to have a merchant of Mary’s caliber join the company,” The Guild’s CEO, Lisa Bayne, said. “She is a premium product person with a passion for artwork and a great track record for building brands. This will be a tremendous asset to us as we work to build the offerings and reach of The Artful Home brand through our Web site, catalog, and eventually, retail venues.”
The Guild, Inc.® is the leading online retailer of original art and fine craft items shipped direct to customers from the studios of top North American artists. The Guild’s catalog, The Artful Home®, presents collections carefully selected from the 10,000 items available through The Guild’s artfulhome.com Web site. Since 1985, The Guild has also published annual sourcebooks helping design professionals locate commissionable artists for special projects.
For more information, go to www.artfulhome.com, or contact Julie Kolka, Manager of Public Relations and Partnerships, at (608) 227-4105 or jkolka@guild.com.
© 2008 The Guild, Inc.
